Music Review: Manilow – ‘Cease and Desist’ EP

With four songs totaling a little over 15 minutes, post-punk trio Manilow released its EP Cease and Desist earlier this month. Hailing from the United Kingdom, Dean Moston (lead vocals, guitar), Paul Chamberlain (bass, keys, backing vocals), and Gary Cardno (drums, percussion, backing vocals) have put together songs that explore themes of relationships, escape, psychosis, and dissolution. While Manilow’s sound is decidedly punk, it also incorporates various rock different elements including metal and alternative rock. “We don’t aim for ‘a sound’, we’re more honest and ragged than that. Our songs are about real life, there’s no redemption stories, no cute resolutions. We just write and play the stuff we are going through”, explains Moston in the band’s biography.

The four-song EP can be categorized in two groups. Although they feature rock and metal elements, “Vitamins”, “Missing”, and “Control Issues” are punk tracks. “Missing” kicks things straight off the bat, showcasing the band members’ various talents. “Vitamins”, the longest track on the EP (clocking in at almost five and a half minutes), features the same frantic drumming as the closing “Control Issues”. This track, the shortest one by far (a little less than two minutes), is frenetic, fast, relentless, and upbeat. It’s a rant of sorts featuring heavy guitars, heavy drumming, and raw singing that makes the lyrics a little difficult at times to decipher. And then you have “Law Here”, the second, guitar-centric track on the EP featuring a catchy, modern rock bass line that hold the beat of the song throughout, a beat that will make your feet tap, your head bob along, and place this track in a category of its own.

In a well-executed EP, Manilow demonstrates its skills with regards to both instrumentation and lyrics in a collection of songs that fans of post-punk should give a try. More information about the band can be found on their Facebook page, and the EP can be streamed on SoundCloud.